Wednesday, 3 June 2015

The Austrian tradition in economics

From the Free Thoughts series at Libertarianism.org comes this interview with Professor Peter J. Boettke of George Mason University in which he talks about "The Austrian Tradition in Economics".

Boettke traces the school’s history from Carl Menger through Eugen Böhm-Bawerk and Joseph Schumpeter, Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, and Murray Rothbard to contemporary economists such as Israel Kirzner, Vernon Smith, and Mario Rizzo. He explains what Austrian economics does and does not do, and distinguishes between what he calls “mainline” economics and “mainstream” economics.

What distinguishes Austrian economics from other schools of thought in economics? How did the Austrian school come to be known as the free market school?